Understanding the structure and properties of geological formations can reduce the cost of drilling wells for oil and gas exploration. To help determine geological formation characteristics, a variety of formation fluid sensors may be deployed down hole.
Down hole sensors often experience radical changes in environmental conditions, including temperature variations, pressure variations, and vibration. Sensors may also experience what is known by those of ordinary skill in the art as “carryover”, or memory effects from previous measurements. For example, in an optical system, material from previous formation fluid analyses may adhere to observation windows, affecting the accuracy of future measurements. Sensors, and the instruments connected to them, may also experience internal drift over time. Any of these variations may contribute to reduced measurement accuracy.